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| Authors: P. W. B. Semmens, A. J. Goldfinch
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Category: Book
List Price: $21.95
Buy New: $11.14
You Save: $10.81 (49%)
New (13) Used (10) from $11.14
Avg. Customer Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 426062
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5 x 0.8
ISBN: 0198607822
Dewey Decimal Number: 625.261
EAN: 9780198607823
ASIN: 0198607822
Publication Date: June 10, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: This book is in brand new mint condition, and has never been used. We deliver all over the world within 4-14 working days. The book may have signs of shelfwear.
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| Customer Reviews:
 If you're obsessed with steam, get this book! August 19, 2005
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
To appreciate this book, you must be obsessed with steam locomotives. And if you are, this is THE book you've dreamed of. This remarkable book explains in fascinating detail every single thing you've ever wanted to know about how these marvels of engineering function. Mostly British locomotives are discussed, but everything applies to U.S. locos. Plus, the really technical info is presented in a very easy-to-understand manner; you don't need to have a physics background. If you're in love with steam, buy this book or give it as a gift for someone who is. Totally, completely captivating!
Steam Loco Bible June 27, 2005
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
If you want to really know how steam locomotives work then this is your book. The author explains what each of the parts on a steam loco do, the different options for each of them and the trade offs that have to be considered when designing a locomotive. The author utilizes graphs and diagrams throughout to describe the various workings of a locomotive. The book does contain photographs but they are generally grainy and of poor quality. However, this does not detract in any way since this is a technical book and not a photo essay. I would not recommend this book for bedtime reading (unless you have insomnia) as it can get quite technical and you have to pay attention to really follow it. If you take the time to read carefully, you will be rewarded with a treasure of knowledge that is almost impossible to find elsewhere. I'm very glad I bought it.
 a strange mix of good and awful... October 25, 2004
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
If you already know everything about Steam, then you'll probably find this good in places and boring in most others.
If you DON'T know your steam inside-out, then you may be left utterly flumoxed as the authors leap from idiot-guide to super-in-depth in a single paragraph and back again. You'll be left asking What The Hey Are They Talking About?
Parts were fascinating - but generally a book written by experts who've forgotten (or never knew) how to write for The Rest Of Us.
A Treasure Chest of Information on Steam Locomotives July 15, 2004
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
This book is nothing less than a "Classic" in the best sense of the word. It offers comprehensive coverage of the design evolution of steam locomotives and the issues that shaped its development until overtaken by diesel traction. The explanations are thorough without significanr recourse to mathemetics. Anyone with a keen interest in the history of technology or the era of steam powered rail transport will find this well written book a treasure.
The title says it all July 12, 2004
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
If you want to know how a steam locomotive really work buy this book, if you are looking for anecdotes, beautifull pictures curious details etc. don't!. I am not a trains fan but I have an interest in the history of technology and I bought this book because I wanted to know how a steam locomotive works. I liked this book a lot because it delivers exactly as promised. The text is technical because the subject is technical and you need a spat of phisics to understand it all. The book explains in detail how the different parts and systems of a steam loco work and how the whole comes together as well as the whys and hows of some operational and maintenace practices. You can also see that steam is not a friendly technology and that steam locos are, by their own nature, difficult to operate and maintain and you get some idea of the amount of labor and skill needed to do it. The fundamental limitations of the technology are also shown and you understand why in certain aspects the last steam locos were so similar to the earliest ones, why some designs were on the tracks for decades and finally why they have become museum objects rather that daily used machines. After reading this book I appreciate steam locos a lot more than I did before.
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